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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25766419">We were never meant to be (but together)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellsey/pseuds/Ellsey'>Ellsey</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU August 2020, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Mention of torture</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 05:54:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,276</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25766419</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellsey/pseuds/Ellsey</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>People say when you see your soulmate for the first time, you see a flash of light and their face is imprinted in your mind. Daisy Johnson and Daniel Sousa don't believe in soulmates, but when they suddenly see flashes of light they are forced to figure out what having a soulmate really means.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Skye | Daisy Johnson/Daniel Sousa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>121</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>AOS AU August 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>We were never meant to be (but together)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is for AU August day 6- Soulmates AU. I've never written a soulmate AU, and it turns out I have some feelings about the concept of a soulmate. Ha!</p>
<p>The title for this comes from the song "m'lover" by Kishi Bashi which is what I spent a lot of time listening to while writing this.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>They say when you see your soulmate for the first time, you see a flash of light, and that person’s face is imprinted in your mind. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daisy Johnson thought this was ridiculous. She didn't even believe in soulmates. She had loved, passionately at times, and she didn’t need some flash of light to tell her that someone was good for her or not. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Which is why she was very surprised when she sat down in a 50’s diner, opened up a folder, and saw a flash of light. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The face on the page was Daniel Sousa’s. It was a nice face, but the face of a soulmate? Ha. First off, he was from a completely different time period. Second...well the time period thing was the biggest thing. That and the fact that she knew nothing about him except what was in the file. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>On top of that, she was not likely to meet him anyway. Jemma and Coulson would take care of things and be out before anyone knew they were there. Hopefully.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Bad luck having a soulmate you’re never going to meet, but it seemed par for the course for Daisy’s life anyway. She just hoped Sousa had a happy rest of his life.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They say when you see your soulmate for the first time, you see a flash of light, and that person’s face is imprinted in your mind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The idea sounded nifty, but it was all nonsense if you asked Daniel Sousa. His life was dictated by his choices, not by some supernatural force connecting him to someone. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He had loved and lost and loved again, and he valued each of those relationships. Sure, they hadn’t worked out for one reason or another, but the relationships had been good while they lasted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Which is why he was beyond shocked when he went into his office to see a strange woman at his desk followed by an immediate flash of light. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe that explained why he had trusted her so easily. It must be that, and not just the fact that he was fooled by a pretty face. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She claimed to be CIA, but she had nothing to back that up. He immediately felt like he could trust her though. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Of course with all his trust he ended up locked in one of his own cells while the spies or whatever they were got away. His soulmate had locked him in prison. That seemed exactly right for how things had been going lately.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her soulmate was going to die soon. Well, that made perfect sense to Daisy. It just fit how her life had always gone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Coulson explained to them that Sousa was supposed to die that day, the first casualty of Hydra. From what she had seen of him, it made sense. He was tenacious, loyal, and very dedicated to his job. Dedicated to his ideals. Daisy couldn’t help but admire that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When Mack made the call to save Sousa, to change history, Daisy couldn’t help but feel a little flutter in her stomach. It was just the excitement of changing history, of course. Nothing more.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Talking to Agent Sousa, listening to him passionately declare that he would try to expose Hydra at all costs, Daisy could see why someone like her might feel drawn to someone like him. He was so determined to do the right thing. Daisy knew exactly how that felt. She knew that drive. She recognized that manic look in his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe having a soulmate meant having more in common with him than she had thought.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When the agents or spies or whatever they were brought him on board their very fancy plane, Daniel had no idea what to think. Everything so far had been so unbelievable, so why not one more thing? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Agent Johnson was her name he found out. He wondered if he should call her just “Agent.” They were soulmates after all. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Too bad he wouldn’t be around long enough to find out what her first name really was.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Everytime he turned around she seemed to be saving his life though. Maybe that’s what soulmates really were. Someone who knew you well enough to know when you would need back-up.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sitting in that strange plane, talking to Agent Johnson about wanting to save Shield from Hydra, he saw a look in her eyes. Something that told him that she understood exactly what he was feeling. She understood his passionate need to root these people out and save everything he had worked so hard for. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yes, for a moment he almost regretted that he’d have to leave her behind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jumping to the 70s was unexpected, but Daisy imagined it was even more difficult for Agent Sousa. She could sense his struggle between wanting to accept what they were saying and disbelief in what was happening to him. She didn’t blame him one bit.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daisy supposed they were right about having your soulmate’s face imprinted in your mind. She couldn’t seem to stop picturing him. It didn’t help that he seemed to be always there. Maybe he was just sticking with her because she had saved his life more than once. Maybe he was just sticking with her because she had taken the time to talk to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Or maybe they really were drawn together somehow.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When he came to give her an easy out with Gideon Malick, Daisy was surprised at how easy it was to fall in with Sousa. Both mentally and physically. She saw his plan right away, the moment he called her “sweetheart.” But there was also something else there. Her body seemed to naturally mold itself to his. Before she knew it she was reaching up to touch his chest, like an affectionate girlfriend would. Or affectionate fiancee in this case. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It felt good. He felt good. It just seemed to make sense.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>All too soon they were leaving, sneaking off to do their actual job, but even then they seemed to work well together. Like a well-oiled machine. And Sousa managed to remain unflappable through it all. It was admirable really. He didn’t even seem to be fazed when she quaked someone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Too bad he didn’t want to go ahead any further with them. Daisy supposed even soulmates had the right to decide when something was too much.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What was it about this woman that had him feel the need to have her back? He had seen her fight. He knew she could take care of herself. Yes here he was walking briskly to her side, calling her “sweetheart” and “fiancee” and it all seemed to fit. His arm just naturally went around her. She immediately leaned into him. She was a good agent.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At least that was what Daniel kept telling himself. They were both good agents. Nothing more.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Watching her work though, he couldn’t help but admire what she could do. Daisy was amazing. She easily got into the computers and found information. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Then they were running and she held out her hands and something happened. Daniel wasn’t even sure what it was. Whatever it was, it was really impressive. She just looked at him and said she’d explain later. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The funny thing was he didn’t even need an explanation. It was her, and she was amazing. That’s all he needed to know.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe having a soulmate meant just accepting the other person for who they were.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They got taken by Nathaniel Malick. She was tortured by Nathaniel Malick. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daisy doesn’t remember much from that time, mostly pain. Pain and planning. Trying to think of a way to save them both. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She also remembers Sousa being there, so solid and real. Talking to her. Grounding her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She remembers his fingers fluttering ever so gently over her neck. Logically she knew he was checking for a pulse. Making sure she was still there with him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That doesn’t explain why she remembers his fingers gently stroking her hair. Calming her in a way she didn’t remember being calmed in a long time. Giving her the strength to keep fighting.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hadn’t always had that fight. Daisy could remember a time when she wanted nothing more than to stop fighting. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But she wanted to fight now. To get better and just destroy Nathaniel Malick.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe that was what a soulmate did. Help you find your strength when you need it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Seeing Daisy get tortured was a special kind of torture for Daniel. He had seen horrible things in the war, experienced horrible things. And it was all coming back to him. It’s so hard to keep those memories at bay. Keep them from tearing you apart.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Once she was thrown into the room with him again it was easier. Easier to just focus on her and keeping her safe. Not that she needed it. This woman was a fighter to the very core. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He really liked that about her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She kept him grounded, kept him safe from his memories, even if ironically it was his memories that he was using to save her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In the end he was able to save her, really through nothing he did. It was more her quick thinking and Nathaniel’s inability to control his new powers.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Carrying Daisy out of that warehouse was painful on multiple levels. Physically of course, but also mentally because he wasn’t even sure where he was going or what he was doing. The team found them though, and Daniel wanted nothing more than to just make sure that Daisy would be ok.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Perhaps that’s what a soulmate did. Make you want to stay no matter what.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A time loop. Of course she was stuck in a time loop. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What a way for the infamous Quake to go out. Sucked into a time vortex such that she no longer existed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Honestly, it wasn’t the weirdest potential cause of death she had experienced.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And through it all, there was Daniel Sousa, super Shield agent and apparently completely solid rock. Time after time he was there, ready to do whatever she needed. Whatever she asked. It didn’t make sense to Daisy.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It shouldn’t make sense. But it did.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Through each progressive time loop she found herself drawn to him. Drawn to his strength and sensibility. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But she had to ask him. Soulmate or not, she had to know. Why? Why is he always there for him?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His answer was so kind and giving and so very him, and Daisy couldn’t help but think that maybe she could fall for him in spite of this soulmate business. Maybe that’s what a soulmate was. Someone you wanted to be with regardless of whatever the universe was trying to force you in to. So she kissed him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was impulsive and really didn’t make much sense. Maybe she kissed him to say thank you for being there. Maybe she kissed him because she knew he wouldn’t remember it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Or maybe she just kissed him because she wanted to.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daniel didn’t really understand much about what was going on, but he knew he didn’t want to leave Daisy’s side. This soulmate business aside, Daisy was like a beautiful light drawing him to her. He couldn’t help but think that he would be drawn to her soulmate or not. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t like she needed him to protect her. No, she was more than capable of doing that all by herself. But he knew she would protect everyone at detriment to herself.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She needed someone to protect her from herself. He could do that. He wanted to do that. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He knew sometimes she needed a little push to do something for her own benefit. Some support when having to talk to someone who had hurt you in the past. Or the future. It was hard to keep track of.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sometimes she just needed backup. Someone to sneak onto a jet and go into outer space with.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ok, that one he almost regretted. Not the being in space part, that was amazing. But the awkward talk with the director of Shield. Hearing that Daisy might have feelings for him though, that broke a dam that had been holding everything neatly in. Holding all his feelings in. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Soulmate or not, he had feelings for this woman. Maybe that’s what a soulmate was. Someone who you can’t help but have feelings for no matter how hard you fight it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daisy was soon faced with the stark possibility that she may never see Daniel again. She had so many things she wanted to say to him, but nothing seemed right.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She wasn’t in love with him. Not like that. Not yet. She had loved Lincoln. Loved him so much. Part of her would always love him. She had always thought she could never have feelings for someone in that way again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But maybe having a soulmate meant having the capacity to find an even greater capacity for affection than you thought was possible.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Or maybe it meant you just wanted to kiss the other person again really badly. So Daisy did.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daniel had been in love. It had been wonderful, but so was this. Daisy’s lips on his, her body pressed closely to him, it was all he could want at this particular moment.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe having a soulmate meant having to wait patiently and praying with every fiber in your being that they’ll return safely back to you.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daisy didn’t believe in soulmates. Or happy endings. Yet here she was getting both. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe this soulmate thing wasn’t so bad after all.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Daniel didn’t believe in soulmates. Or happy endings. Yet here he was getting both.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe this soulmate thing wasn’t so bad after all.</span>
</p>
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